Alarm as climate sceptic named head of US environment agency

The US Senate has confirmed Scott Pruitt as the new administrator of the US Environmental Protection Agency, which oversees regulations to control pollution of air, water and land.

Pruitt, who was confirmed on 17 February, is a controversial choice. In his previous role as the attorney general of Oklahoma, he spent much of his career embattled in lawsuits against the agency he will now lead.

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At the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) annual meeting in Boston, anonymous EPA scientists told New Scientist that work inside the agency is moving along as usual, though concerns about future changes still loom large. And at a protest rally for science in the city centre during the conference, worries about climate and the fate of the EPA were a reoccurring theme.

“We need bold action on climate change. The fact that we’re ignoring it is backwards,” said rally attendee Emily Gilstrap, a zooarchaeologist who lives in Massachusetts.

Essential regulations

Fellow attendee Maura Callahan, a hydrogeologist who does research to inform municipal water suppliers, said she was worried about potential changes to the Clean Water Act, which regulates water pollution in the US.

“[These regulations are] absolutely essential. It costs much more to clean up dirty water than to keep it clean,” she said.

At the conference, Jane Lubchenco, former head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, said it is too soon to tell how Pruitt’s confirmation and the policies of the Trump administration will affect scientists and the work of the EPA.

“It partly depends on whether this administration takes top down control or lets agency heads make decisions,” she said. Now that Pruitt has been confirmed, she predicts difficult times ahead.

Others urged calm. “There is as yet no clampdown on climate science in the US government,” said Rush Holt, chief executive of AAAS, at the launch of the conference.